Recreational boaters and marinas in hurricane country don’t have to go it alone when making vessel storm preparations. Preparing Boats & Marinas for Hurricanes, a 12-page downloadable free guide, produced by BoatUS, is based on over 40 years of experience in preparing boats for the severe wind, waves, rain and storm surge. Included is a valuable storm preparation checklist that can help boaters methodically and carefully take the right precautions.

The guide presents up-to-date information based on the first-hand experiences of boaters and marinas during the recent hurricane-intensive years. It is packed with information on the causes, types and prevention of hurricane damage to recreational boats. Also included are some insights and pointers on preparing boats for storms while they are kept at docks, on boat lifts, in canals, on moorings, in high-rise storage boatels and on trailers. Additional information on how to reduce “chafe,” which causes lines that secure a boat to piers or pilings to snap, is provided.

Any boater can download the guide at the BoatU.S. Hurricane Resource and Tracking Center at http://www.BoatUS.com/hurricanes, or pick up a hardcopy at your local West Marine store.

BoatUS – Boat Owners Association of The United States – is the nation’s leading advocate for recreational boaters providing its 650,000 members with a wide array of consumer services including a group-rate marine insurance program that insures nearly a quarter million boats; the largest fleet of more than 500 towing assistance vessels; discounts on fuel, slips, and repairs at over 870 Cooperating Marinas; boat financing; and a subscription to BoatUS Magazine, the most widely read boating publication in the US.